Experiencing ADDvantages

3 Tips for Restful Sleep

Here's an interesting article on New Scientist titled Are bad sleeping habits driving us mad?

The article suggests that a lack of sleep may actually cause the symptoms of mental illness, whereas the medical world has previously believed the opposite--that lack of sleep is a symptom of mental illnesses.

I fully believe that one of the best things we can do to manage adult ADD is to make sleep a priority. Even one night of poor sleep will result in increased ADD challenges. It's like trying to use a cell phone that hasn't been charged--it works for a little while, but it will eventually shut down.

As you can imagine, a person who consistently lacks restful sleep will have considerable difficulty managing ADD long term.

Here are my top 3 tips for getting a good night's sleep:

1. Shut down the computer 1-2 hours before bed.
2. Take 30 minutes to unwind and de-stress each and every day.
3. Establish a bedtime routine to signal your brain & body that it's time to shut down.

What's YOUR best tip for ensuring a good night's sleep?

Researchers Find Possible Genetic Clue To ADHD

From NPR.org:

This week in the Journal of Neuroscience, scientists report that in two brothers with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, or ADHD, a genetic change appears to make one of the brain's neurochemical pathways — the dopamine transporter — run in reverse. The result of that miswiring is that the brain acts as if amphetamines are always present, the researchers say.

Randy Blakely, one of the study's authors, and Allan D. Bass, professor of pharmacology and psychiatry at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, talk about the findings and what they might mean for ADHD treatment.

Check out this fascinating interview on the NPR website that offers some clues about ADD, genetics, and medication!

Take Care of Your Brain: Advice from Dr. Daniel Amen

Posted by Sharon Howell, ADD Management Group Coach

Our brains are amazing things. We can do things to improve how our brains work. As ADDers we are constantly working to develop strategies that will improve our focus, organization, frustration levels, memory, etc.

A recent email I received from Dr. Daniel Amen suggested that we are not stuck with the brain we have if we practice a brain healthy lifestyle. Here is the first step in brain healthy living:

Protect your brain from head injuries and toxic exposure. Head injuries, even minor ones, can change the course of your life. Your brain is very soft and your skull really hard. Wear your seat belt and think of golf and table tennis rather than football and soccer. Toxic exposure from drug or alcohol abuse, excessive caffeine or nicotine use, environmental toxins ruin brain function, sometimes permanently. As you would not put toxins in your gas tank (duh!) do not put them into your body and brain.

In what ways could you be better protecting your brain?

Jen's Note: Dr. Daniel Amen is a featured speaker at the Virtual AD/HD Conference this September! He'll be talking about Healing ADD Through Brain SPECT Imaging.

Join the Virtual AD/HD Conference mailing list at www.adhdconference.com to save $50 when registration opens next month!

Adults with ADD: Your Environment Can Make or Break You

An interesting and encouraging study was released this week that all adults with ADD need to know about.

The study suggests that a gene linked to ADD actually helps carriers in nomadic tribes in Kenya stay well-nourished, while it does the opposite for carriers settled tribes.

If that seems slightly convoluted, it can be simply summed up in this way: The findings seem to indicate that ADD can be either an advantage or a disadvantage, depending on one's environment.

A nomadic lifestyle, in which people are continually on the move, is arguably more stimulating than a settled lifestyle. And we all know that the ADD brain (and/or body) needs stimulation to be happy. Boredom is like torture for an ADDer.

So How Do These Findings Affect You?

Of course, different conclusions can be drawn from this study. However, everyone seems to agree that it suggests an evolutionary benefit to ADD. (We're wired this way for a good reason!)

To me, the data supports the idea that environment can "make or break" a person with ADD. An ADDer with a job that bores them will not be as successful as an ADDer with a job that challenges and excites them.

Similarly, an ADDer that leads a rich and stimulating life outside of work by engaging their interests, making time for their hobbies, and enjoying  their friends and family will be much happier than an ADDer who comes home from work, stresses about how dirty their house is, and then checks out and retreats to the computer for hours.

Hold Your "Yeah, but..."

If you're reading this and thinking to yourself, "Yeah, but it would be too much work to find a better job" or "Yeah, but my house IS really dirty and I can't possibly do something fun until I clean up," then you're missing the point. And you're missing out on life!

Here's a little secret that I'd like to share with you: when you create an environment that works with your ADD (not against it), your self-esteem increases, which in turn increases your motivation to accomplish the smaller and more boring tasks (like updating your resume or cleaning your house). This is one of the big themes that runs throughout my book, Odd One Out: The Maverick's Guide to Adult ADD.

Creating more stimulating and supportive environments for yourself, like a challenging job, a night out with friends, or a class on an interesting topic, will lead to getting more stuff done in the long run.

If you don't believe me, try it. I dare you.

Have thoughts on this article or the study referenced? Please share them here!

 

New Hope for ADHD in the Workplace

Posted by Sharon Howell, ADD Management Group Coach

A recent article cited that ADHD can cost adults 20 or more work days a year. This does not refer to days absent from work, as much as lost performance time. In other words, because of reduction in quantity and quality of work by ADDers, businesses are apparently not getting as much productivity out of these employees.

Dr. Ronald C. Kessler has worked with people suffering from depression and found that $1,000 worth of treatment could help prevent $4,000 in lost productivity. He is confident that the same or better results could be accomplished working with those affected by ADHD.

So, it looks like there may be new hope in the workplace for ADDers. Based on this information it seems to me that if businesses made it clear that there is help available, everyone would benefit!

Memory Lapses: “Senior Moments” or ADD?

Posted by Sharon Howell, ADD Management Group Coach

I don’t know about you, but I certainly wonder about impending Alzheimer’s Disease every time my mind refuses to remember a name or a fact. I have, since being diagnosed with ADD, just assumed that that is the issue and do not dwell on any concerns about Alzheimer’s.

A recent study by Dr. Daniel Amen, published in the Journal of Psychoactive Drugs, shows that especially during a concentration task, ADD subjects (over the age of 50) scored lower than healthy (don’t you love the use of the word healthy) subjects on memory testing.

He also goes on to say that ADD might increase a person’s risk for Alzheimer’s disease, head injuries and depression. This is indeed an interesting thought!

So, I don't know about you, but I am increasing my healthy eating habits, improving my exercise regime and keeping my brain active.

Now if I could just figure out how to get more sleep!

Anxiety and Recurring Dreams

Whenever my anxiety levels increase in waking life, my dreams become more stressful.

I have two recurring dream "themes." In one, I am about to graduate either high school or college, and I suddenly realize that I did not complete my math requirement. (Math was always my least favorite subject and the one I often struggled with.) I freak out in the dream, fearing that I won't graduate and hoping no one finds out about the problem. (In reality, I never in danger of not graduating.)

In the other recurring dream theme, I find myself going about my day-to-day life when I suddenly realize that I am missing a coaching appointment with a client. I freak out because I completely forgot my appointments and the client will be waiting for me. (In reality, I have accidentally missed only one appointment in five years.)

Erin's anxiety dreams are always about needing to leave somewhere and having no time to pack up all her things. College, childhood camp, or old home, she never has enough time to do everything she needs to and pack up all her stuff. (In reality, she's never been in a situation like this.)

It's probably safe to assume that my anxiety centers around the fear of forgetting important things, and Erin's anxiety is a fear of not getting things done.

While everyone is subject to periods of anxiety, it's not uncommon for adults to be diagnosed with anxiety and ADD as co-occuring conditions. And chances are that the more anxiety you experience in waking life, the more it shows up in your dreams!

Care to share on this topic?

Do you have recurring dream themes when you experience increased anxiety in day to day life? What happens in your dreams? What fear do you think the dreams represent?

Please leave your thoughts and experiences in the comments! I think this is a really interesting (and kinda fun) topic that may be helpful to talk about!

A Maverick Approach to Diet and Health

Full fat, raw dairy. Eggs. Pastured meats from local farms, and from an Amish farmer. Sweet apples and pears from orchards in my neighborhood, and colorful vegetables growing nearby. Artisan sourdough bread made from locally grown, whole grains. Wine from my favorite vineyard that sits under mountain cliffs.

This is what I've been eating. Sounds delectable, doesn't it?

If you're an ADDer who has ever struggled with heart disease, weight loss, mood swings, energy regulation, or general health problems, then keep reading...

Here's the thing: I, like the rest of America, have always believed that dietary fat (specifically animal fat) is bad. For as long as I can remember, the message has been that dietary fat causes diabetes, heart disease, and obesity. I, like many Americans, bought low-fat cheese, skim milk, no-fat yogurt, and lean cuts of meat.

Over the past few months, I've been exposed to some maverick ideas on the subject of health and nutrition. I first started to change my mind about the health benefits of dietary fat when I read Nina Planck's book Real Food: What to Eat and Why. After reading that book, I began making small changes in my diet until, one day, I realized that I was eating completely differently...without trying to.

I had, in a very organic manner, adopted a "back to basics" diet that included plenty of fat, and almost no refined carbohydrates. (Refined carbohydrates are sometimes known as "whites:" white bread, white rice, white pasta, sugar, etc. Corn syrup, a sweetener used in many low-fat foods, is also a refined carbohydrate and one that is arguably the worst refined carb of all.) I was eating plenty of natural carbs, like fruits and vegetables, but I wasn't craving candy, ice cream, and other high-carb sweets. Erin had a similar progression in her diet, and described it this way:

One morning I was eating my favorite cereal, Honey Bunches of Oats, which is supposed to be a very healthy cereal. I looked down at the half-finished bowl and realized that I just didn't want that cereal. It didn't compare to the real food I could be eating, like yogurt and fruit or scrambled eggs. I haven't wanted my "favorite cereal" since and the box has sat in the pantry untouched.

Little by little, the protein and fat in my diet increased, and the carbohydrates decreased. So did the volume of food that I consumed. Turns out protein and fat are much more filling and satisfying! And I noticed amazing benefits to my mental and physical health, as I posted about in  'I've Never Felt Better' earlier this week.

So you can imagine how happy I am as I work my way through the very thick and interesting new book by Gary Taubes, Good Calories, Bad Calories: Challenging the Conventional Wisdom on Diet, Weight Control, and Disease. (The book was developed from Taubes' 2002 New York Times article, What If It's All Been a Big Fat Lie, which I recommend over the book if you're not a big science buff.)

Taubes painstakingly traces the history of low-fat diet recommendations, and reviews the actual scientific studies on diet, nutrition, and health. Turns out that the evidence overwhelmingly points to carbohydrates (mainly refined carbohydrates), not dietary fat, as the cause of numerous "Western diseases," such as obesity, diabetes, and yes, even heart disease. The science doesn't come close to proving that animal fat causes illnesses. (Vegetable oils do, but that's another story.) I'll leave it to Taubes to explain how this information has been ignored and covered up. It makes for a fascinating read by an author who is an objective journalist interested in presenting facts, not opinions.

Meanwhile, I'm eating the way humans did long ago, and reaping the benefits. I am continually amazed by the positive effects--from healthy skin to better moods and (much) more energy.      

This way of life has improved my ADD challenges, too. I'm finding it easier to focus and, because my stress levels are way down, I haven't been getting overwhelmed. I do still tend to be late for appointments, though. :-)

I don't expect anyone to read my posts and be convinced to make dietary changes. But I do, at the very least, recommend reading Nina Planck's Real Food and Gary Taubes' NYT article. See if these experts change the way you think about diet and health. Then, maybe, see if you don't agree. I know I certainly do...

...and I've never felt better.

 

ADD, Chiropractics and CranioSacral Therapy

Posted by Sharon Howell, ADD Management Group Coach

I have recently had requests from what I would call non-traditional practitioners contact me to talk about what they can do for people with ADD. I have listened to them with an open mind and wanted to share what they have told me.

The Chiropractor I talked to practices family chiropractics and I was very impressed that proper nutrition was high on his list of important helping measures. Next, he discussed with me the fact that he has had much success with improving focus in children who have had neck manipulation. I am not, of course, an expert in relating this information, but he discussed the fact that often these children (those whose parents complain of lack of focus) are holding their shoulders up tight and their neck rigid. He explains that no one can concentrate or focus in that position and that manipulation improves this posture and focus in the children he has worked with. I suggested that the release or relaxation in the back of the neck might help to improve the flow of dopamine to the brain (or in other words, the poor neck-spine positioning might be a cause of the blockage.) He stated that that this could be a possibility, but that there is no real way to know. He just knows that the children he works with have improved there ability to focus.

I also spoke with a woman who practices CranioSacral therapy. This therapy works on the theory that an imbalance or restriction in the CraniorSacral system (which consists of membranes and cerebrospinal fluid that surround and protect the brain and spinal cord) could potentially cause any number of sensory, motor or neurological problems. CranioSacral Therapy gently detects and corrects problems and encourages natural healing.

I do not recommend or reject either of these practices, but wanted to share the information with anyone who might care to research it further. I am doing further research into both of these practices myself and will keep you informed if there is any progress. If anyone has any additional information or opinions to share, please do.

             

Star Gazing

I'm a bit of a science geek. I would have graduated college with a degree in Astronomy if the required  Calculus wasn't so hard! But I am still fascinated by the universe, and I jump at the chance to watch a meteor shower.

Meteors are better known as "shooting stars." When a comet moves through the universe, it leaves behind a trail of debris. And when the earth passes through that trail and debris from the comet comes into contact with the earth's atmosphere, it burns up and appears to fall out of the sky.

For the last few nights, Erin and I have been sitting out on the deck and staring at the sky in order to catch the Perseids. It's one of the most brilliant meteor showers of the year and, although the shower peaked over the weekend, you can still catch quite a show this week from anywhere in the Northern Hemisphere. If you live in a city or some place where there is a lot of light, you'll have trouble seeing the meteors, and it's worth it to take a drive to a dark place.

It occurred to me last night, as we were relaxing and staring at the sky, that summer star gazing is an excellent way to wind down.

Taking time to wind down from the day is essential for ADD management. Without a little winding down time, the brain tends to keep going well after the body is ready to rest.

There are tons of ways to wind down at night, but why not take advantage of the wonders of the world and watch some "shooting stars"?